European Final

[Kerry Mike]

LEGENDS

Am only back this evening, will write more later in the week when I recover.

[Tankie]

Lads we cant really criticize a team for winning playing negitive rugby, as a leinster fan I would have had no problem with leinster winning like that if it was required, i do believe that munster could have expanded their game and still won but I've played many a game where we are camped on the try for 10mins and there was not a hope in hell we would trust the backs with the ball, forwards rugby is still rugby and can be beautiful too if you know the rules. People say toulouse didnt have the ball in the last 15mins, if i recall correctly they had it 3 times and got turned over each time.

I think fair play to munster on winning this competion and there should be some great craic in the inter - pros next season.

(also on negetive play, if Nordie teams didnt play negative football non of them would never have won an All Ireland )

[Hoof Hearted]

had a wee look at this game again last night and you can certainly see where dinny is coming from in his analysis
from the comfort of your own living room on a monday night by yourself, you wouldnt think it was the same game, and there was very little to get excited about. it was the whole occasion and atmosphere and pints of heineken which made it seem fantastic on saturday evening !!

but, i still think munster done right, you play to your strengths to do what you have to do, so to all munster fans it is a tremendous victory

[Dinny Breen]

i still think munster done right, you play to your strengths to do what you have to do, so to all munster fans it is a tremendous victory

I agree absolutely and it was a tremendous victory.

That pick and drive is currently the worst thing about rugby.

[AZOffaly]

Ellisalde's comment is funny.

'Le Pick and Drive'

It's like something out of 'Allo 'Allo

[upthehoops]

Lads we cant really criticize a team for winning playing negitive rugby, as a leinster fan I would have had no problem with leinster winning like that if it was required, i do believe that munster could have expanded their game and still won but I've played many a game where we are camped on the try for 10mins and there was not a hope in hell we would trust the backs with the ball, forwards rugby is still rugby and can be beautiful too if you know the rules. People say toulouse didnt have the ball in the last 15mins, if i recall correctly they had it 3 times and got turned over each time.

I think fair play to munster on winning this competion and there should be some great craic in the inter - pros next season.

(also on negetive play, if Nordie teams didnt play negative football non of them would never have won an All Ireland )

I dont see how the last line stands up given the way Down have played to win 5 All Irelands, nor Donegal or Derry.
Tyrone did play quite an expansive game up until the All Ireland SF in their 2003?
Allied to this Down/ Derry 1st round Ulster SFC game in 1994 still goes down by many purists as one of the most outstanding games ever.
That said there was absolutely nothing wrong with the way Munstar triumphed on Sat

[Dinny Breen]

Munster Players severely reprimanded

Munster players Doug Howlett and Rua Tipoki have both been fined and
reprimanded by the Munster Branch on foot of an incident that occurred
during last Saturday's HEC Final in Cardiff.

The incident took place mid-way through the second half when Tipoki
sidestepped a Toulouse tackler and made a break before passing the ball to
Howlett who would have scored a try had the pass not been adjudged forward
by male model and part-time referee Nigel Owen.

"Both lads are well aware that Munster Rugby does not tolerate any of our
backs attempting to play running rugby," explained a visibly annoyed Munster
PRO Pat Geraghty. "Earlier this season, Brian Carney was excluded from our
HEC Squad for trying something similar and it is completely unacceptable for
highly paid recruits from the Southern Hemisphere to seek to disrupt the balance
of the team by attempting to play such an alien brand of rugby."

"From an early age, every aspiring Munster back is coached to run straight into the
nearest opposing player before going to ground and setting the ball back so that the
forwards can take over. That is the Munster way - as known and admired throughout the
world - and we're not going to allow a pair of glory-hunting blow-ins to damage our image."

"Munster Rugby would like to apologise to the many supporters who were
shocked or offended by this shameful incident," added Mr. Geraghty "I have already been in
touch with Toyota and have assured them that this aberration will not happen again.
"Our fans can rest assured that Doug and Rua have been warned that any repetition of this
unacceptable behaviour will have very serious consequences for both of them."

[AZOffaly]

 

[Hoof Hearted]

too much time on your hands and your obviously still hurting dinny
very funny though

i thought rugby down south was different to GAA and that everyone supported everyone else on big days like saturday
im a bit nieve i guess on that score

[Hoof Hearted]

Former Ireland and Lions second row Mick Galwey is a Munster legend, having captained the Irish province 85 times.

Born in County Kerry in Munster, he won a senior All-Ireland Gaelic Football Championship with Kerry at the age of 19 before focusing on rugby union.

He captained the Munster sides that lost the 2000 and 2002 finals and here he tells BBC Sport just what makes Heineken Cup winners Munster so special.


It is difficult to sum up what the Munster psyche is all about, but the one word that springs to mind is honesty.

Every player who puts on a Munster jersey has to be an honest player - about their strengths and weaknesses, and about working hard to make themselves and the team better.

They have to play for the jersey, they have to play for the team and they have to know what it means for the supporters.


Blues Brother
It is not a big corporate thing, it is something much deeper than that.

The great thing is that anybody can be a Munster fan. Obviously people who live in Cork, Kerry and Limerick support Munster.

But there are people living in Dublin who would rather support Munster than Leinster, which tells you all you need to know.
( I assume he obviously doesnt mean Kildare )

All over Ireland, people support Munster because they like what they see.

And what they see is an honest team who go out there and perform to the best of their ability every time.

Munster is in the southern part of Ireland and it is steeped in the Gaelic tradition - and in sport that means Gaelic football and hurling.

But rugby union, and the success of Munster, has really united the province.

The Heineken Cup has made Munster, but in a lot of ways they have made the Heineken Cup.

They are the best-supported team in Europe, there is no doubt about that.


Galwey says Munster's travelling fans are "almost a 16th man"
The fans are a massive part of Munster's success. With the travelling army, it is almost a 16th man and there is a real bond between the fans and the players.

More people went to the Millennium Stadium for Munster than for Ireland and that is testament to what the people feel about them.

They always - absolutely always - get behind the team and they will travel anywhere to support them.

Everybody was desperate for a ticket to the match and for a way of getting over to Cardiff, because all the flights and ferries are full.

People travelled by plane, boat, even helicopters, to make sure they got to Cardiff for the game.

I know some fans flew to Belgium and France from Ireland so they can get another flight back to the UK. That kind of support is priceless and means a lot to the players.

There is a really experienced spine in the Munster team. Players like John Hayes, Ronan O'Gara, David Wallace and Peter Stringer have done so much for Munster and continuity and loyalty is very important.

But when Munster bring in new players, they always pay a lot of attention to his character as well as his skills on the pitch.

It is great to get big name players like Doug Howlett in the red jersey, and we have had them before with guys like Jim Williams and Christian Cullen.


New Zealand's all-time leading tryscorer Doug Howlett is now with Munster
These guys have been fantastic but I think the key is they have really bought into the Munster way and psyche. Munster would never look at any individual player as a superstar - they are a true team.

The players from the outside are the X-factor but every player who plays for Munster wants to win and they all know there's something very special about wearing the jersey.

Long before the professional game came about it was the same, and they have managed to keep that special feeling going. It is legendary.

In 1978, Munster beat the All Blacks at Thomond Park. Anybody who played for Munster that day can walk down the street today and people will know who they are.

So now, anybody who plays for Munster knows they have to better the jersey after all that has gone on before.

I was there for the two finals we lost in 2000 and 2002 - but we learned from that.

We eventually came back a better and stronger team. Some of those same players came back and won the tournament in 2006 and that was very, very important for Munster and rugby in Ireland.

It was what Munster had been crying out for. They had to win that match against Biarritz, they did not want to be the bridesmaids again, and now it has gone further.

It is great to have won one Heineken Cup, but the Munster players will be of the opinion that great teams go on and win it again and again.

[An Lark]

Dinny Breen...

I for one didn't like the last 20 minutes of the game as a neutral, it was just too negative for me.

Dinny, were you seriously 'neutral' on Saturday? I haven't come across any other Irish person who wasn't roaring Munster on.

[Dinny Breen]

Dinny, were you seriously 'neutral' on Saturday? I haven't come across any other Irish person who wasn't roaring Munster on.

Yea I was pretty impassive, just wanted to watch a good game which it was until the 60th minute mark, granted I think I was the only one in the pub not to cheer when Munster scored.

For the record I have no issue with the Munster Team per se, just the bandwagon, hyperbole and BS associated with it. Even their style isn't an issue, it's just that negative pick and drive that bugs me.

[his holiness nb]

I haven't come across any other Irish person who wasn't roaring Munster on.

We there that many people into it?

I dont know anyone who actually did watch it!

Still, was good to hear the Irish team won.

[An Lark]

I haven't come across any other Irish person who wasn't roaring Munster on.

We there that many people into it?

I dont know anyone who actually did watch it!

Still, was good to hear the Irish team won.

Well I didn't mean to imply that every single Irish person I knew was interested. However, in my own particular circle of family, friends and work colleagues there was a big interest in this game. And all along the common feeling was of support and goodwill towards Munster, no matter what province anyone was from.

[Tankie]

I haven't come across any other Irish person who wasn't roaring Munster on.

We there that many people into it?

I dont know anyone who actually did watch it!

Still, was good to hear the Irish team won.

Well I didn't mean to imply that every single Irish person I knew was interested. However, in my own particular circle of family, friends and work colleagues there was a big interest in this game. And all along the common feeling was of support and goodwill towards Munster, no matter what province anyone was from.

An Lark i think most people know what you mean. Any sports fan that did not watch or have an interest in the result would really have to be questioned as a sports fan.